Ten stocks took a beating on Wednesday, recording significant losses during the session, as investors generally disposed of shares to mitigate risks from the escalating trade tensions between the US and China while digesting company-specific negative developments.
In this article, we highlight the 10 worst-performing stocks on Wednesday and explore the reasons behind their drop.
To come up with the list, we focused exclusively on stocks with a $2 billion market capitalization and 5 million in trading volume.
10. WeRide Inc. (NASDAQ:WRD)
WeRide Inc. (NASDAQ:WRD) saw its share prices drop by 4.63 percent to close at $9.16 apiece as investors sold off positions to mitigate risks from the escalating trade tensions between the US and China.
The pessimistic sentiment came after US President Donald Trump’s new social media post on Wednesday, expressing his frustration with China, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping is “very tough and extremely hard to make a deal with.”
The new development casted doubts over an expected potential phone call between the two leaders this week, with fears spilling over to stocks of Chinese companies, including WeRide Inc. (NASDAQ:WRD).
US states’ delisting calls of Chinese companies also triggered concerns. In a recently issued statement, Comptroller Elise Nieshalla of Indiana said that there is a growing risk posed by China-based companies due to widespread failures to meet US transparency, accounting, and standards.
Indiana joined 20 other states in calling for the delisting of from the US stock market.
9. Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN)
Algonquin Power dropped its share prices by 4.82 percent on Wednesday to close at $5.92 apiece following an investment firm’s downgrade of its stock.
On Wednesday, National Bank downgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) to “sector perform” from “outperform” previously, but maintained its price target at $6.75.
According to National Bank, its decision was based on the company’s three-year earnings per share reset, which aligns with consensus estimates for 2025 and 2026, and ahead for 2027, but lags behind its previous forecasts due to capital expenditures, Hypothetical Liquidation at Book Value (HLBV), and rate case awards.
According to Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN), it budgeted $2.5 billion into regulated assets over the next three years, while increasing its rate base to $9.1 billion by 2027. No equity issuance is expected during the said periods.
“Algonquin possesses the foundational elements of a premier pure-play utility, and the opportunity to create meaningful value is what drew me to the Company,” said Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) CEO Rod West.
8. Lumen Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LUMN)
Lumen Technologies dropped its share prices by 4.87 percent on Wednesday to close at $3.91 apiece after falling 33 spots in Fortune 500 rankings.
Fortune 500 companies are the 500 largest revenue-generating companies in the US in terms of total revenues. Cumulatively, they bring about $19.91 trillion in revenues and employ more than 31 million individuals.
Last year, Lumen Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LUMN) recorded $13.1 billion in revenues, lower by 9.6 percent than the $14.5 billion registered in 2013.
Also on Wednesday, Lumen Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LUMN) announced plans to provide the terrestrial backhaul connectivity for the JUNO Trans-Pacific Cable System, the highest-capacity trans-Pacific cable linking Japan and the United States.
“Our critical fiber backbone enables the seamless high-capacity transport from Asia into the heart of the U.S. digital economy. This level of control, scale, and performance is exactly what global enterprises and cloud providers need to support the next generation of AI and data-driven innovation,” said Chief Revenue Officer Ashley Haynes-Gaspar.
7. Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY)
Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY) dropped its share prices by 5.06 percent to finish at $13.14 apiece as investors disposed of shares amid the risks of the faltering US-China trade talks and renewed calls from other states to delist Chinese firms from the stock exchanges.
Following the two countries’ 90-day tariff truce, US President Donald Trump expressed his frustration with China on Wednesday, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping is “very tough and extremely hard to make a deal with.”
Trump’s social media post casted doubts over an expected potential phone call between the two leaders this week, with fears spilling over to stocks of Chinese companies, including Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY).
Further triggering concerns were mounting calls from US states’ comptrollers to delist Chinese companies.
In a newly issued statement, Indiana Comptroller Elise Nieshalla said that there is a growing risk posed by China-based companies due to widespread failures to meet US transparency, accounting, and standards.
“As stewards of invested public funds, we have a responsibility to protect our beneficiaries from foreign entities to seek to exploit our capital markets while evading accountability,” she said.
6. Summit Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:SMMT)
Summit Therapeutics dropped its share prices by 5.14 percent on Wednesday to finish at $19.56 apiece as investors booked early profits following the previous day’s gains.
Earlier this week, Zacks Equity Research issued a market report on Summit Therapeutics Inc.’s (NASDAQ:SMMT) stock, underscoring a selling pressure that has pushed the company into the oversold territory.
Zacks added that the stock could now be due for a turnaround.
Summit Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:SMMT) currently holds a “buy” recommendation from Zacks, which means that it is in the top 20 percent of more than 4,000 stocks ranked based on trends in earnings estimate revisions and EPS surprises.
In recent news, Summit Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:SMMT) announced late last week that it achieved its primary endpoint of progression-free survival for the evaluation of Ivonescimab combined with platinum-doublet chemotherapy.
However, investors hungry for more concrete developments appeared unimpressed, as evident in the disposal of its shares.
5. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD)
CrowdStrike saw its share price decline by 5.77 percent to close at $460.56 each as investors sold off positions following its disappointing earnings performance in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026.
In a statement, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) swung to an attributable net loss of $110 million from a $42.8-million attributable net income in the same period last year.
Revenues increased by 19.76 percent to $1.1 billion from $921 million registered year-on-year.
For the second quarter, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) said it expects to hit between $1.144 billion and $1.151 billion in revenues, and earnings per share of $0.82 to $0.84 cents.
For the full-year period, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) is targeting between $4.7 billion and $4.8 billion in revenues, and $3.44 to $3.56 in earnings per share.
4. Flowserve Corporation (NYSE:FLS)
Flowserve dropped its share prices by 6.16 percent on Wednesday to end at $47.41 apiece following plans to merge with Chart Industries, Inc. (NYSE: GTLS) for a transaction value of $19 billion.
Under the agreement, Chart shareholders will receive 3.165 shares of Flowserve Corporation (NYSE:FLS) common stock for each share of Chart common stock owned.
Following the closing of the transaction, Chart shareholders will own approximately 53.5 percent and Flowserve Corporation (NYSE:FLS) shareholders will own approximately 46.5 percent of the merger company, on a fully diluted basis.
“The merger will create a differentiated leader with the scale and resilience to meet the significant demand for comprehensive industrial process technologies and services,” said Flowserve Corporation (NYSE:FLS) President and CEO Scott Rowe.
“Chart’s and Flowserve’s highly complementary businesses will strengthen our ability to meet our customers’ needs, empower innovation and drive long-term, sustainable growth,” he added.
3. Merus N.V. (NASDAQ:MRUS)
Merus NV snapped a four-day winning streak on Wednesday, shedding 7.75 percent to end at $57.58 apiece as investors repositioned portfolios following the company’s announcement of a $300-million follow-on offering that could result in a potential dilution of their existing equity.
According to the company, it aims to sell 5.26 million common shares at a price of $57 apiece. It also granted its underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 789,473 common shares.
According to the company, it plans to use the proceeds to ramp up the clinical development of its product candidates, while the balance will be allocated for preclinical research and technology development, working capital, and general corporate purposes.
Merus N.V. (NASDAQ:MRUS) tapped Jefferies, BofA Securities, Leerink Partners, Guggenheim Securities, Truist Securities, and LifeSci Capital as its acting joint book-runners for the offering.
Meanwhile, Van Lanschot Kempen will act as lead manager for the offering.
2. Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR)
Dollar Tree saw its share prices decline by 8.37 percent on Wednesday to end at $88.62 apiece as investors took profits following yesterday’s gains, likely influenced by comments from its competitor’s chief executive that they have seen an increasing number of middle- to high-income class customers during the past quarter.
Despite reporting impressive earnings performance on Wednesday, the drop in share prices of Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) suggested that investors have already priced in the news.
A day after Dollar General’s comments, Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) said that it has likewise recorded higher-income customers shopping at its stores.
In the first quarter of the year, Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) grew its net income by 14.4 percent to $343.4 million from $300.1 million in the same period last year.
Revenues also increased by 10 percent to $4.6 billion from $4.17 billion year-on-year.
1. Asana, Inc. (NYSE:ASAN)
Asana Inc. fell by 20.47 percent on Wednesday to end at $15.11 apiece after it warned that its net retention rate could take a beating in the second quarter of the year.
During its earnings call, Asana, Inc. (NYSE:ASAN) Chief Finance Officer Sonalee Parekh said that the company expects the current quarter to be pressured due to a combination of downgrade pressure, particularly in its enterprise and middle-market segments, and the technology vertical.
He added that the company is confident that it would improve its net retention rate in the long run, but said that the near term will face headwinds.
In the first quarter of the year, Asana, Inc. (NYSE:ASAN) narrowed its net loss by 37 percent to $40 million from $63.7 million registered in the same period last year. Revenues increased by 8.7 percent to $187 million from $172 million year-on-year.
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